INSIDE THE LIONS
The 2012 Lion squad features three seniors, four juniors, 12 sophomores and 12 freshmen... Leading the returning core are a pair of sophomore who were named to the 2011 West Coast Conference All-Freshman Team - outside midfielder John McFarlin and forward Dylan Seedman... McFarlin, who was also an All-WCC Honorable Mention selection, contributed one goal - a game-winner - and three assists on the year... Seedman trailed only seniors Artur Jozkowicz and Phil Da Silva in total points, tallying three goals, including one game-winner, and one assist as a rookie. Co-captains Mitch Boland and Craig Nitti will be key to anchoring the back line... Boland, a senior, started all 17 games he appeared in last season, contributing to the team's four shutouts and also scoring one game-winning goal... Nitti, a sophomore, also scored one game-winning goal in 2011, while starting in nine of his 19 appearances... New faces expected to make an immediate impact the LMU lineup include Luc Brubaker and Akio Ohtake-Gordon on the outside midfield and Connor Gill and Michael Meissner in the front line. Pedro Velazquez is also expected to be key in the central midfield, though he is currently sidelined due to an arm injury... Head Coach Paul Krumpe is in his 15th year at the helm of the Lion program...

RANKED OPPONENTS
The Lions are 27-40-7 all-time against ranked opponents, including a 17-16-4 record at Sullivan Field... UC Santa Barbara enters Sunday's game ranked as high as #4 in the preseason polls, representing the highest ranked opponent the Lions have faced since the 2009 meeting between the two schools when the Gauchos were ranked #6...

HEAD-TO-HEAD VS. THE GAUCHOS
Dating back to 1981, the Lions hold an 8-10-0 all-time record against UC Santa Barbara, including a 3-3-0 mark at Sullivan Field... Since 1996, LMU has won eight-of-10, including three in overtime, as well as the last meeting, which took place in 2009... The 2-1 victory in 2009 came while the Gauchos were ranked #6 in the nation...

THE UC SANTA BARBARA GAUCHOS
UC Santa Barbara is ranked among the best in the country to open the 2012 season, including a #4 national rank by Soccer America... The Gauchos were the unanimous pick to win the Big West Conference North Division, earning all eight first-place votes... A trio of players were named to the All-Big West Preseason team including senior forward Dion Acoff, senior midfielder Machael David and senior defender Peter McGlynn... Acoff was also named a Soccer America Preseason All-American... UCSB went 15-7-1 overall last year, advancing to the third round of the NCAA Tournament where they fell 2-1 to Creighton...

COMING UP NEXT
The Lions' six-game, season-opening homestand continues on Friday, August 31 when they host UNLV. Kick off at Sullivan Field is scheduled for 3 p.m.

WELLS FARGO PCH CUP
Separated by 19.1 miles of scenic coastline, longtime cross-town adversaries Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine have come together in an effort to boost their decades-long rivalry with the creation of the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) Challenge...the series, which is in its fourth year, serves as an annual scorecard for the NCAA-sponsored athletic contests between the Lions and Waves, and challenges each institution to rise above the other within the West Coast Conference...any head-to-head competition, including matches in the post-season and tournaments throughout the year, will be counted toward the scoring and added to the scorecard as they occur...for the sports in which the two teams do not meet head-to-head, the teams will battle for points that will be awarded on the basis of overall finish at their respective post-season championships...Pepperdine has won the challenge in each of the first three seasons...to learn more about the PCH Challenge and view the current scorecard, please visit: .